A Christmas Carol (1938)

Director:

Edwin L. Marin

Writers:

Charles Dickens
Hugo Butler (screen play)

Release Date:

16 December 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

Greater than "David Copperfield" !

Plot:

On Christmas Eve, an old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the spirit of his former partner...

Plot Keywords:

Ghost | Christmas | Spirit | Christmas Eve | Charity

Cast

Reginald Owen	...	Ebenezer Scrooge
Gene Lockhart	...	Bob Cratchit
Kathleen Lockhart	...	Mrs. Cratchit
Terry Kilburn	...	Tiny Tim
Barry MacKay	...	Fred (as Barry Mackay)
Lynne Carver	...	Bess
Leo G. Carroll	...	Marley's Ghost
Lionel Braham	...	Spirit of Christmas Present
Ann Rutherford	...	Spirit of Christmas Past
D'Arcy Corrigan	...	Spirit of Christmas Future
Ronald Sinclair	...	Young Scrooge
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Donald Hainey
Bunny Beatty	...	Martha Cratchit (uncredited)
Frank Benson	...	(uncredited)
Billy Bevan	...	Street Watch Leader (uncredited)
Ted Billings	...	Man on Sidewalk (uncredited)
Matthew Boulton	...	Second Charity Solicitor (uncredited)
Bob Carey	...	(uncredited)
St. Luke's Episcopal Church Choristers	...	Singers - 'Adeste Fidelis' (uncredited)
Charles Coleman	...	First Charity Solicitor (uncredited)
Harry Cording	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Richard Deane	...	Handsome Boy (uncredited)
David Dunbar	...	(uncredited)
Herbert Evans	...	(uncredited)
Gertrude Geyer	...	Slim Girl at Fred's Party (uncredited)
Douglas Gordon	...	(uncredited)
Lumsden Hare	...	Man Discussing Scrooge's Funeral (uncredited)
Hugh Harrison	...	Tom (uncredited)
Forrester Harvey	...	Old Fezziwig (uncredited)
Harold Hensen	...	Jack (uncredited)
Halliwell Hobbes	...	Clergyman Sliding on Sidewalk (uncredited)
Olaf Hytten	...	Schoolmaster (uncredited)
Boyd Irwin	...	Man Discussing Scrooge's Funeral (uncredited)
Bill James	...	(uncredited)
I. Stanford Jolley	...	Man on Sidewalk (uncredited)
Tiny Jones	...	Woman Encouraging Fred to Slide (uncredited)
Muriel Kearney	...	Cratchit's Daughter (uncredited)
Colin Kenny	...	(uncredited)
Crauford Kent	...	Scrooge's Tall Business Associate (uncredited)
George Kirby	...	Goose-Seller (uncredited)
Maude Leslie	...	Bess's Mother (uncredited)
Norma Leslie	...	Plump Girl at Fred's Party (uncredited)
June Lockhart	...	Belinda Cratchit (uncredited)
William Martin	...	Cratchit's Middle Son (uncredited)
John O'Day	...	Peter Cratchit (uncredited)
Charles Peck	...	Dick Wilkins (uncredited)
John Rogers	...	Chestnut Vendor (uncredited)
Clifford Severn	...	Boy Buying Scrooge's Christmas Turkey (uncredited)
Renee Shearing	...	Fred's Maid (uncredited)
William Stack	...	Man Discussing Scrooge's Funeral (uncredited)
Ira Stevens	...	Fan Scrooge (uncredited)
James Stevens	...	Fat Man at Fred's Party (uncredited)
Doris Stone	...	Pretty Girl at Fred's Party (uncredited)
Monte Vandergrift	...	Drunk (uncredited)
Delmar Watson	...	Snowballer in Gang (uncredited)
Eric Wilton	...	Scrooge's Short Business Associate (uncredited)

Directed by
Edwin L. Marin

Writing credits
Charles Dickens		(as Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol)
Hugo Butler		(screen play)

Produced by
Joseph L. Mankiewicz	....	producer

Original Music by
Franz Waxman

Cinematography by
Sidney Wagner		(photographed by)
John F. Seitz		(uncredited)

Film Editing by
George Boemler		(film editor)

Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons

Set Decoration by
Edwin B. Willis		(set decorations)

Costume Design by
Valles		(costumes by)

Makeup Department
Jack Dawn	....	character makeup creator

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Marvin Stuart	....	assistant director (uncredited)
Dolph Zimmer	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
John S. Detlie	....	associate art director (as John Detlie)

Sound Department
Douglas Shearer	....	recording director

Music Department
Paul Marquardt	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leonid Raab	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
David Snell	....	composer: additional music (uncredited)
Franz Waxman	....	musical director (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Loew's (produced by) (as Loew's Incorporated)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (presents)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1938) (USA) (theatrical)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1938) (UK) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Loew's
• Warner Home Video (2009) (Canada) (DVD) (4 film collection)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2009) (USA) (DVD) (4 film collection)

Also Known As:

"Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol" - USA (complete title)

Runtime:

69 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #4884) | Canada:G (video rating) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Loew's

Trivia:

Although he seemed much older, Reginald Owen was only 4 years older than Gene Lockhart.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Scrooge is eating in the tavern on Christmas Eve, he is reading a book with the spine label "Bankers Book". Dickens' depiction of this book is that it is Scrooge's property, possibly a ledger. Yet in the film, Scrooge stands, pays the innkeeper for the meal, and leaves - leaving the book behind him on the table.

Quotes:

[Scrooge has come in after being visited by the ghosts]
Ebenezer Scrooge:Fred! My dear nephew! How are you?
Fred:Well who is this?
Ebenezer Scrooge:It's me! Your uncle Scrooge! Smile makes a difference, doesn't it?

Movie Connections:

Featured in Rocky (1976)

Soundtrack:

Silent Night, Holy Night

One of the Great Christmas Movie of All-Time!

More that sixty years after it was made, MGM's 1938 version of "A Christmas Carol" still ranks as one of the best adaptations of the Dickens classic ever.

First, there's that terrific cast. Lionel Barrymore was to have played Ebeneezer Scrooge, when the accident that confined him to a wheelchair prevented it. Reginald Owen, whose career in US films alone spanned more than 40 years, was given the part, and, if not as vivid a Scrooge as Alistair Sim, he is more than up to the task. Terry Kilburn (The little boy who said "Goodbye, Mr. Chips!" the following year) goes perhaps a bit overboard with the cute stuff as Tiny Tim, but at least he tries. Gene and Kathleen Lockhart (And daughter June, making her film debut at 12) make as good a pair of Cratchits as you will ever see, with Gene Lockhart underplaying more than was usually his wont. Barry McKay and Lynne Carver (The latter perhaps best remembered as "Dr. Kildare's" girlfriend during the '40's) add just the right spirit as Scrooge's nephew, Fred, and his fiancee, respectively. And, speaking of spirits, there's Leo G. Carroll as probably the out-and-out spookiest Marley's Ghost there ever was, and Ann Rutherford (That's Polly Benedict to you "Andy Hardy" fans!) as probably the loveliest Ghost of Christmas Past.

Atmospherically, the movie is as comfortable and heartwarming as an old Christmas card. As a director, Edwin L. Marin was, frankly, a hack, and, as such, usually handed a lot of forgettable "B" properties at MGM. With "Christmas Carol," though, he redeems himself. One wonders, though, if executive producer Joseph L. Manckiewicz wasn't responsible for at least some of the directing chores, as well. Hugo Butler's screenplay captures the feel of it all perfectly, and Franz Waxman's score is one of his best.

A rare treat all around. Don't miss it. But do not, under any circumstances, see the colorized version. The black-and-white play of light and shadow in this film is essential to its' atmosphere.

Incidentally, there's a substantial article, including an interview with June Lockhart, on this film in the book "AMC Presents the Great Christmas Movies."